WHICH GRAPHICS CARD?

[Naf456]

hi guys (and girls)

Just got ripped by CEX from buying a BROKEN ATI HD3850 off them. they said a 550 watt PSU is ok. it Wasn't working. Then they said i need a 600 watt one, don't worry, if they think it's not broken, i'll sell it back to them. He He HE :lol:

so, i have a buget for under £100 (yes i live in the UK) and i want to buy a NEW (preffible an Nvidia), Graphics card which is about the same performance of my old ATI HD3850

i have a 550 watt PSU which has a 17A 6pin Graphics Card Connector, i also have a Molex to 6pin Graphics Connector.

i want it to atleast Smothly Run Crisys on all Meduim setting (Anything higher is a bonus! )
and Can pump out HD video

So which Graphic Card is Right For me do you think?

Any and all help Apreiciated

X

 

[Dustpuppy]

17A 6pin ? do you mean you have only 17 amps on the 12v rail? Can you post the specific power supply? cause that's horrifically low for a 550w psu.

Radeon 4770 is the bang for the buck at the moment, though here in the states the 4850 is actually cheaper.

 

[Helloworld_98]

look at the HIS 4870 512MB, it's about £100 at OCUK at the moment but you'll probably need a new PSU.

 

[teja92]

A 9600Gt is good for u or a HD 4670 ( Almost same as a Hd 3850)

 

[coozie7]

@ naf456: Scan, Overclockers, Novatech, CCL, E-buyer, Pixmania and Microdirect spring to mind as as a start for your search.
If your PSU has 36A on the 12v rails (2x18) or more then look for a HD 4870 or GTX 250/9800GTX+/GTX in order, high to low performance.
With less power: 9800GT, HD4850 or HD4770.
With a little patience you should find all of those at 100 Pounds or less. Do n't forget to check the prices include VAT, and delivery can add a fair bit, so factor that into the deal when checking.
Like this:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-199-AS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1402

 

[Naf456]

Thank guys.
i Still quite a noob at this.
the PSU i have is a HEC-550TD-PTE

i don't know what rails are. so what are they?

it's the PSU from my Dads MESH PC

 

[Dustpuppy]

kk You should be fine with that power supply. Though it could still be malfunctioning (I doubt this).

You have 2 12v rails, one is 18a one is 17a. However, that doesn't mean your system will deliver 35a of juice over the 12v. Your powersupply is rated at 550w and 185w is pumped over the 5v + 3.3v rails.


550w-185w = 365w, 365w / 12v = 30.417a , so you probably have somewhere around 28-30 amps on your 12v rails. This should be sufficient for any of the cards you're considering.

 

[coozie7]

In that case, I'd take the HD4870 off the list due to its quite high power requirements. All the others will be fine.
I would recommend the GTS250, the one from Overclockers seems quite a bargain, but, as always, check prices first.

 

[Naf456]

i was actually looking at a Nvidia 8800GT 512mb for £98.

is That a good Graphics Card?

and wheres the Best place to buy a Graphics Card?

i have a pc world down the road from me, but its quite Expensive and they have Really low Stock on components lately.

 

[coozie7]

The GTS250 I linked to is faster and cheaper.
PC World are expensive, use the E-tailers I listed instead if you can.

 

[neon neophyte]

ya, the gts250 is a rebadged gtx 9800.

 

[Gin Fushicho]

ya, the gts250 is a rebadged gtx 9800.

lol , its also the same price and runs colder with a few more transistors. and its more of a re-badged 9800GTX+ . =3

 

[erdinger]

.... Go for the Ati 4770 it uses very little power and beats the 9800gt. It's the best performance/price ratio atm.... Gt 9800/8800 performes worse and uses more energy... If the 4770 is not avaiable go for the 4850 that's about the same performance (maybe a bit more) at nearly the same price with still good power requirements!

 

[Naf456]

What Erdinger?
coozie7 said take that off the list cos its to high in power?

so you guys think the ASUS nvidia GTS 250 from overclockers. OK!

 

[Naf456]

hey, i've red about PSU's but i don't understand it still.
how do i know what rails a graphics card choses and how can i tell from Amps and volts what wattage it is?

i thought you just:

Amp x Volts = Watts.

my PSU says:

ACOutput:____230Vac 50Hz 7a
DC output:___+3.3V_+5V___+12v1__+12v2__-12v__+5vab
MAX. A______30A___38A___18A____17A____0.3A__2A
+5V&+3.3V combined 185W Total wattage :550

is this Capable of pumping a GTS 250 or even a 4770?

i Didn't know i had Dual Rails.

 

[Gin Fushicho]

.... Go for the Ati 4770 it uses very little power and beats the 9800gt. It's the best performance/price ratio atm.... Gt 9800/8800 performes worse and uses more energy... If the 4770 is not avaiable go for the 4850 that's about the same performance (maybe a bit more) at nearly the same price with still good power requirements!

It performs close to the same but not better then a GTS 250 , but it does consume less power and will beat it in Xfire if your going against a GTS250 SLI team.

 

[Gin Fushicho]

hey, i've red about PSU's but i don't understand it still.
how do i know what rails a graphics card choses and how can i tell from Amps and volts what wattage it is?



is this Capable of pumping a GTS 250 or even a 4770?

i Didn't know i had Dual Rails.

You want to look at the 12V rail , and the Amp's look a little low I'd go for a higher quality PSU if I were you.

 

[Dustpuppy]

You're correct Watts = Amps * Volts,

However you'll note that if you add up all the Amps * volts on your power supply it'll quickly excede the 550w that your machine is rated for

eg:
3.3*30 + 5*38 + 12*35 = 709w, yet it's only a 550w psu.

Generally good power supplies will state what the combined 12v output is in watts, but sometimes such as in this case they leave that off and you have to extrapolate. Since it says that 185w goes over the +5v/3.3v rails it's a safe bet that at a minimum the 12v rail can pump out the other 315w. However, it's just educated guesswork without proper documentation.

I'm 100% certain that if your PSU is working as it should, you are able to power a 4770 , GTS 250, or Radeon 4850.

 

[Gin Fushicho]

SHOULD , I dont think it will unfortunately.

 

[Naf456]

thanks ,DustPuppy.

how much money should i spend on a PSU?

if i spend 100 on a PSU then 86 on a graphic card....wohha, £186

i don't know about you guys £186 quite a lot to me.

in maplins they do a 750W PSU which has dual 12V rails and the Ampage of 18A 17A for £40 (from £80), but i guess that defetes the Object.

 

[coozie7]

This is one of the better deals:

http://www.pixmania.co.uk/uk/uk/1909544/art/ocz/stealthxstream-600w-pc-po.html

This has 4X18A 12v rails while CCL and Overclockers have Antec Basiq 550W supplies (3X20A 12v rails) for about the same price, As for card, well, you'll have to hunt around again

 

[Naf456]

i've search around for a Cheaper price.

ebuyer has it for £55 .
and ebuyer has a better seller rating the Overclockers and Pixmania put togher

 

[Helloworld_98]

^ yeah but ebuyer takes more time to navigate along with most of those bad sellers ratings for OCUK coming from a few years back.

 

[coozie7]

@ naf456: Glad to see you're doing your own research, mate, nice find!
Now all you need is a card
Let us know how you get along.

 

[Naf456]

hi guys.

I don't want to REALLY buy psu cos that leaves me with only a small amount of cash for a graphics card (£45)
100 my buget and i have to stick to it.
also i want a Graphics card which is atleast supported for the sims 3. (i know i'm asking quite alot now.)
but the GTS250 isn't supported. heres the list:

NVIDIA GeForce series
FX 5900, FX 5950
6200, 6500, 6600, 6800,
7200, 7300, 7600, 7800, 7900, 7950
8400, 8500, 8600, 8800
9600, 9800, GTX 260, GTX 280

ATI Radeon™ series
9500, 9600, 9800
X300, X600, X700, X800, X850
X1300, X1600, X1800, X1900, X1950
2400, 2600, 2900
3450, 3650, 3850, 3870,
4850, 4870
Intel® Extreme Graphics
GMA X3x00 series


on amazon they have a sweet 9600gt for 66 quid. i know the clock speed is 650 MHz compared to the GTS250 736MHZ (something like that) but it is supported and 20 quid cheaper which is a huge plus for me.
the only problem i want to know is if my PSU can run it and is it really any Good for high end gaming.
(what i mean buy that, is that it can play crysis on meduim graphics easyily.
i'm only a 14 year old boy (please don't get put off) so i don't really need Super Duper graphics card that need need liquid nitrogen cooling or anything like that :lol:
also i just thought about buying a new ATI HD3850.